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Running freight pickups and deliveries involves a lot of moving parts—literally. From the moment a customer requests a pickup to the point a delivery is confirmed, there are multiple steps, multiple people, and plenty of room for things to go wrong if the process isn't managed properly.

This guide walks through how that process works inside a proper freight management system—each stage, what it involves, and why it matters.

Credit: Photo by Roman on Unsplash

How the Process Works—Step by Step

Step 1: Book the Pickup

It starts at the desktop. When a customer requests a pickup, staff enter the key details—the contact requesting the job, who the freight is going to, what the freight is, and which driver is handling it. ConNote's smart auto-fill takes care of saved addresses and contact details, so the same information doesn't need to be typed out from scratch every time.

For jobs with more specific requirements—dangerous goods, purchase order numbers, booking details—those fields are right there when you need them. But they don't get in the way of a straightforward job. Simple stays simple.

Step 2: The Driver Gets the Job on Their Phone

Once the booking is in the system, the driver sees it on their mobile app. The pickup details—address, freight information, everything they need—are right there without anyone having to make a call or send a message.

As drivers work through their jobs, they update the status as they go—on board, arrived at depot. Operations staff see those updates in real time, giving them a live view of where freight is and what stage it's at. No chasing, no guessing.

Step 3: The Pickup Becomes a Consignment

When the freight arrives at the depot, it moves from a pickup to a consignment and gets attached to a trip. A trip in ConNote is a scheduled freight run—multiple consignments travelling between depots, with expected departure and arrival dates, trailers in use, and the specific points where each consignment is picked up or dropped off along the way.

Having all of that in one place makes planning and managing the transport run a lot more straightforward than tracking it across separate systems or spreadsheets.

Step 4: Prepare for the Final Delivery

Once the trip reaches the destination depot, staff update the system and the consignments move into the delivery queue. The delivery status window shows everything that needs to go out and lets staff assign jobs to drivers for the final leg. Nothing sits in a grey area—the dashboard keeps delivery progress clear and makes sure nothing gets missed.

Step 5: Deliver It—and Capture Proof

The driver pulls up their delivery list on the app—freight details, delivery address, receiver contact information. Same system, same format as the pickup side.

When the delivery is done, they capture proof of delivery on the spot. Either a photo or a signature, depending on what's needed. That record goes straight into the system—no paperwork to file later, no trying to track down a signed docket after the fact. For customers who need delivery confirmation, that proof is there and ready.

Step 6: The Complete Picture Is Always There

Once everything is done, ConNote holds the full record of that freight's journey—every event, every location update, every signature or photo, from the initial pickup right through to proof of delivery. Staff can view all of it on the desktop at any time.

If a customer needs confirmation, a proof of delivery report is available on demand. And this is really just the surface of what ConNote handles—there are plenty of other options available depending on how a business operates.

About ConNote

ConNote by Logical Developments is a Transport Management System that has been managing the consignment process for Australian freight businesses since 1997. It runs across desktop and mobile, keeping data entry staff and drivers connected and operations running smoothly—from the first pickup booking through to final delivery confirmation.

It's built to be customised around how each business works, not the other way around. And because it's built on a modular foundation, it can be extended as a business grows and its needs change.

Bishop’s Transport are a real example of what this looks like in practice. After moving to ConNote, they could complete and manifest ten consignment notes to a trailer in two minutes. Read the full case study here for the detail on how the transition worked for them.

Want to Know if ConNote Is the Right Fit?

Every transport business runs a little differently. If you want to find out how ConNote could work for yours, the best starting point is a conversation.
Get in touch with the Logical Developments team here.